Patrick Söderlund, head of Arc Raiders studio Embark, has revealed that the game now has fewer AI voice lines after the team re-recorded some parts following a wave of criticism. The decision marks a partial retreat from the studio's initial approach to development.
Like Embark's previous game The Finals, Arc Raiders uses an AI-powered text-to-speech system. According to Söderlund, the studio pays actors for all time spent in the booth and continues to bring them back as the game is updated, while also paying them for approval to license their voices through text-to-speech for lines that aren't essential to immersion, mostly system audio.
Voice actor Neil Newbon from Baldur's Gate 3 previously called upon Embark to bring actors back to the studio to re-record lines, and that appears to be what the studio ended up doing. Söderlund explained that the team re-recorded some lines post-launch with real voices, noting that "a real professional actor is better than AI; that's just how it is."
The studio's defence of its approach hinges on how it characterises the technology. Söderlund said Embark uses AI first and foremost as a production tool to help test things internally, allowing the team to test 15 different lines without recording them before deciding what to record. He framed it as a way to work alongside actors, not replace them, saying the studio doesn't necessarily believe in replacing humans with AI all the time.
The argument reveals a genuine tension between the economics of game development and employment concerns. Embark claims the text-to-speech system allows it to implement new dialogue in hours instead of scheduling recording sessions and rehiring performers. For a smaller studio trying to compete with AAA publishers, operational efficiency matters. According to co-founder Stefan Strandberg, the approach is a studio strategy to punch above its weight, allowing a small team to make rich worlds while staying lean and avoiding generative AI in other parts of the game.
Yet the financial argument sits uneasily with industry voices. Critics have noted that AI voices lack the subtlety and emotional cues that trained performers add. The debate splits roughly between those who argue this represents ethical AI use because actors consented and were compensated and the feature is limited, versus those who see a dangerous precedent for working voice actors and point out that AI voice modulation offers accessibility benefits for players.
The broader industry context amplifies the concern. Nexon CEO Junghun Lee, whose company publishes Arc Raiders, stated that he believes every game company is now using AI and championed its efficiency potential, while Square Enix ordered mass layoffs whilst reorganising around AI initiatives. Against this backdrop, Embark's post-launch concession to re-record some lines signals that the conversation has shifted closer to the concerns of workers than the studio initially anticipated.